plummet wrote:Build it and they will come bro. Do it in a manner that you are somehow helping the poor or miss-treated. Set up in locations that is relatively safe. Arrange transportation from airports, accomidation in known good hotels and reduce/limit the chance of risk for your customer.

If its epic conditions the adventurous will come..

You may be able to build yourself a sanctury of epic proportions and at the same time improve ever so slightly your part of the world.

I was going to reply largely along the lines of the above - good idea - ..... I have great interest in Jamiaca (it used to be a colony of the country of my birth and growing up its music and food both found a place in my heart) . Sadly I've never visited but have always wanted to, from my current location its unfortunately hard to reach at reasonable cost compared with some of the alternatives. My ideal would be an assisted transfer from the airport to a simple hotel or B & B where there'd be access to transport and some local kite knowledge... I have a week in late November (thinking .......)

Last edited by windybrit on Wed Jun 19, 2013 5:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.

MattyRossJa wrote:And for the record I have been living here for 20 years of my life, I think i'm a little more aware of the problems here than yourself thanks. It takes more than reading a study to know about what life is really like in any given country. Perhaps you could come visit sometime and use your expertise to help the country change for the better?

You are suggesting I go to a country that has laws that exist solely to discriminate against me and put me in jail. Change the laws and the native people's homophobic, hateful attitudes and I'll consider it.

I cannot bring myself to visit any country where:

- Same-sex intercourse is punishable with a prison sentence of up to 10 years- The last prime minister used a song about burning and killing gay people as his party's theme song (Chi Chi Man by T.O.K)- The nation's only LGBT rights group operates completely anonymously for their own protection- 70% of the population does not feel that gay people deserved the same basic rights and privileges as 'other people' - Hundreds of the nation's LGBTI citizens have sought and been granted asylum in Canada, the US, and the United Kingdom

Without doing any further research I will tell you what I believed to be true in Jamaica. I don't profess to be correct but this is what I have been led to believe via TV, reading articles etc....

1. Most of the resorts are on the west side of the island but the prevailing winds are from the East2. Leaving the resort is dangerous without a guide3. Cab drivers are not to be trusted, not only with valuables but your life if they think you are worth robbing they may also just kill you if it is easier.4. Rape is a huge problem in Jamaica... I travel with my wife so that certainly bothers me.5. Most good kiting spots require travel off the resorts....

You see the problem here?

Sincerely

Pete

P.S. whether or not they like gay people is not really a deciding factor in my choice of vacation spots, mind you if it was the other way around and you had to be gay to live there... I would probably not go....

Metaphor_ wrote:Jamaica has major human rights issues--I'd actively discourage people from going there until they reform the country.

but would you encourage people to go to Dominican Republic or Brazil ? both probably have far worse human rights issues than Jamaica.

In Jamaica the police and authorities turn a blind eye to the crime of beating up and murdering gay people. they claim its part of the islands culture. In Brazil and the DR gays have the same rights as everyone else. Why would anyone want to go to Jamaica. There are so many other great kite spots in the world.

plummet wrote:Build it and they will come bro. Do it in a manner that you are somehow helping the poor or miss-treated. Set up in locations that is relatively safe. Arrange transportation from airports, accomidation in known good hotels and reduce/limit the chance of risk for your customer.

If its epic conditions the adventurous will come..

You may be able to build yourself a sanctury of epic proportions and at the same time improve ever so slightly your part of the world.

I was going to reply largely along the lines of the above - good idea - ..... I have great interest in Jamiaca (it used to be a colony of the country of my birth and growing up its music and food both found a place in my heart) . Sadly I've never visited but have always wanted to, from my current location its unfortunately hard to reach at reasonable cost compared with some of the alternatives. My ideal would be an assisted transfer from the airport to a simple hotel or B & B where there'd be access to transport and some local kite knowledge... I have a week in late November (thinking .......)

Late November is a generally great time to come. This is usually when the big breeze returns to the north coast.

I think the popularity of Jamaica gives it a hard rep on a global stance. It's probably the only Caribbean country that gets regular news coverage for it's negatives. When most other caribbean countries have worse treatment of visitors. Anyone who comes here will tell you they have no problem going downtown and getting taxis etc. to all over the island. Yes I sadly agree that providing safe transport from airport to hotel/kite spot would be a major attraction due to those pre-existing notions that Jamaica is unsafe for a Tourist, which it isn't.

Laughingman wrote:Without doing any further research I will tell you what I believed to be true in Jamaica. I don't profess to be correct but this is what I have been led to believe via TV, reading articles etc....

1. Most of the resorts are on the west side of the island but the prevailing winds are from the East2. Leaving the resort is dangerous without a guide3. Cab drivers are not to be trusted, not only with valuables but your life if they think you are worth robbing they may also just kill you if it is easier.4. Rape is a huge problem in Jamaica... I travel with my wife so that certainly bothers me.5. Most good kiting spots require travel off the resorts....

You see the problem here?

Sincerely

Pete

P.S. whether or not they like gay people is not really a deciding factor in my choice of vacation spots, mind you if it was the other way around and you had to be gay to live there... I would probably not go....

1. Do a little more research and you will find most of our hotel rooms/tourism are on the North coast, North coast has all the best kiting conditions. Wind wise south is better , but not for hotels. Yes we get mostly easterly trade winds, but this wind travels down the coast. Like the past 2-3 months we get 18+ knots every day on north and south coasts.

2. Leaving a resort is not dangerous, use trusted taxi's that the hotels/resorts partner with. 3. Don't travel with things worth losing (rolex watch, engagement ring. etc.). It's very rare a visitor to Jamaica gets murdered. See stats compared to Dom Rep, I think on average 25 visitors to dom rep get murdered every year. I think Jamaica last year had 1 , which was a young person in a bar during a drive by. 4. Not sure on the stats for tourists. but i've rarely read any reports of such rapes on visitors. Like i've mentioned before, Jamaica can be an unsafe place. But there is a general understanding that Tourists keep this country going, somewhat, and they are treated as such. 5. again, nothing wrong with leaving resorts. most visitors will preach that that is when they actually have the most fun and meet the nicest people. no point visiting a country and not experiencing it's culture, you only get the manufactured pandering culture in the rerorts.

I met a Canadian couple recently who stayed at the Grand Bahia Precipe on the north coast, they left the hotel every chance they got to find the kite spots and had an amazing time. And personally if you're traveling and want to experience a country as well as it's kiting spots, I would stay in a cheaper small villa. Less fake. but after a long day's kiting it's always good to get back to your clean hotel room and inclusive daqeries

I totally agree I am ignorant to the truth.. my point was this is how Jamaica is being portrayed to people by for example the Canadian Government... here is their advice when traveling to Jamaica.. the repeated warning about high crime and murder is enough send people looking else where.

I totally agree I am ignorant to the truth.. my point was this is how Jamaica is being portrayed to people by for example the Canadian Government... here is their advice when traveling to Jamaica.. the repeated warning about high crime and murder is enough send people looking else where.